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US threat to ditch Iran nuclear deal

Rhys Blakely, Washington

April 21 2017, 12:01am, The Times

James Mattis, the US defence secretary, travelled to Egypt from Saudi Arabia yesterdayJonathan Ernst/Getty Images

The White House has hardened its stance on Iran, warning that it is ready to walk away from the international deal reached in 2015 that was designed to end Tehran’s attempts to acquire nuclear weapons.

James Mattis, the defence secretary, said that the US and its allies were ready to “checkmate Iran and the amount of disruption and instability they can cause”, and hinted at an escalation in the fight against the Iranian- backed Houthi rebels in Yemen.

“Everywhere you look, if there is trouble in the region, you find Iran,” General Mattis said during a visit to Saudi Arabia. He identified Tehran’s backing of the Houthis as part of a broader effort to destabilise the Middle East.